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The river draws its name from the treacherous
off shore shoals ( dubbed the “ Cape of Feare” by
early mariners). The shoals stretch for miles into
the Atlantic from the river’s mouth. The Cape Fear
River and its tributaries were impor tant highways for early
commerce through the historic ports of Brunswick, Charles town
and Wilmington. In the mid- 1800s, the Cape
Fear was an outlet for the commercial products
of more than 28 counties. River trade extended
up to Fayetteville through a series of three locks
and dams that raised the water level. Through-out
the 19th century, shallow- draft steamboats
called at more than 100 local landings between
Fayetteville and Wilmington.
The Cape Fear River Basin is one of four river
basins completely contained within North Carolina’s borders. The head -
waters ( origin) of the basin are the Deep and Haw rivers. These rivers
converge in Chatham County just below B. Everett Jordan Dam to form
the Cape Fear River. The river ends as a 35- mile- long coastal estuary
Total miles of
streams and rivers:
6,386
Total acres of lakes:
31,135
Total acres of estuary:
31,753
Municipalities
within basin: 115
Counties
within basin: 26
Size: 9,149
square miles
Population:
1,833,701
( 2000 U. S. Census)
profile:
T he 200- mile Cape Fear River is the main tributary and namesake of the state’s largest
river basin. It is the only river in North Carolina that flows directly into the ocean.
CAPE FEARRIVER
BASIN
An oil tanker travels up
the Cape Fear River 15
miles below Wilmington.
Historic steamboat
COURTESY OF N. C. ARCHIVES AND HISTORY
KEN TAYLOR, WILDLIFE IMAGES

The river draws its name from the treacherous
off shore shoals ( dubbed the “ Cape of Feare” by
early mariners). The shoals stretch for miles into
the Atlantic from the river’s mouth. The Cape Fear
River and its tributaries were impor tant highways for early
commerce through the historic ports of Brunswick, Charles town
and Wilmington. In the mid- 1800s, the Cape
Fear was an outlet for the commercial products
of more than 28 counties. River trade extended
up to Fayetteville through a series of three locks
and dams that raised the water level. Through-out
the 19th century, shallow- draft steamboats
called at more than 100 local landings between
Fayetteville and Wilmington.
The Cape Fear River Basin is one of four river
basins completely contained within North Carolina’s borders. The head -
waters ( origin) of the basin are the Deep and Haw rivers. These rivers
converge in Chatham County just below B. Everett Jordan Dam to form
the Cape Fear River. The river ends as a 35- mile- long coastal estuary
Total miles of
streams and rivers:
6,386
Total acres of lakes:
31,135
Total acres of estuary:
31,753
Municipalities
within basin: 115
Counties
within basin: 26
Size: 9,149
square miles
Population:
1,833,701
( 2000 U. S. Census)
profile:
T he 200- mile Cape Fear River is the main tributary and namesake of the state’s largest
river basin. It is the only river in North Carolina that flows directly into the ocean.
CAPE FEARRIVER
BASIN
An oil tanker travels up
the Cape Fear River 15
miles below Wilmington.
Historic steamboat
COURTESY OF N. C. ARCHIVES AND HISTORY
KEN TAYLOR, WILDLIFE IMAGES